Syria has pledged to increase electricity supplies to Lebanon by 20 megawatts in a bid to ease the country’s power problems, Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri said Tuesday.

Hariri made the statement after holding talks in Damascus with his Syrian counterpart, Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa Miro, in an aim to boost economic and trade relations between the two countries, reported the Daily Star newspaper.

The prime minister left Tuesday to the Syrian capital ahead of an official Lebanese delegation comprised of economists and social experts.

Hariri reportedly said that Lebanon’s debts to Syria, covering the electricity supply, would be paid off in “facilitated payments,” but did not elaborate.

He added that the additional amount of power Syria would provide Lebanon would be distributed to the northern part of the country.

Miro headed the Syrian delegation of the bilateral Economic and Social Committee and told reporters after the talks that a gas supply accord would be signed between the two countries next week. “Discussions were positive and fruitful,” he added.

Miro reportedly told Hariri that cooperation between the two countries will be reached in a number of fields.

Hariri affirmed that Syria pledged to stand by Lebanon “against Israel’s mounting aggression,” and expressed hope that such an alliance between the two countries would remove obstacles to economic and trade exchanges.

“We spoke of trade, cultural exchange and other bilateral issues, especially involving cooperation in the fields of gas and electricity supply,” the prime minister said, cited by the paper.

Referring to the gas deal between the two countries, Miro said that “everything is in place for the signing ceremony next week.”

Asked about the presence of Syrian troops in Lebanon, Miro said that it was for the “good of the Lebanese people.” – Albawaba.com